Tularemia, Weather, and Rabbit Populations

Tularemia, a disease of rabbits and hares (lagomorphs), rodents, and several other animals, is transmissible to man. In the period 1926- 1940. Illinois had more than 3,000 reported cases of human tularemia, about twice as many as any of the other states. The great majority of these Illinois cases were traceable to contact with cottontail rabbits. This paper deals with the relation of human tularemia in different parts of the state and in different years to weather, to the abundance of rabbits, and to some other aspects of its epidemiology. In analyzing the information on tularemia in Illinois, the writers have made an effort to determine the methods of management which would permit Illinois hunters to enjoy the sport of rabbit hunting without undue risk of infection.